Flooding Possible In Mother Lode

Tuolumne County, CA — Tuolumne County has put out sand piles for residents for making sand bags to protect against possible flooding as rain and snow falls in the Mother Lode.

There are two locations to get sand. One pile is at the 7th Street and 7th Avenue intersection in Jamestown behind the elementary school. (Click here for a map) A second pile is in Tuolumne on Birch Street. (Click here for a map) You will need to bring your own bags and a shovel.

Tuolumne County Community Resource Agency Deputy Director Duke York says, “The good news is that most of the leaves are down, so hopefully we won’t get too many of our drainage inlets plugged and overflowing.”

Crews in the south division of the roads department will be monitoring streets around the Rim Fire where there could be washouts.

York adds, “Fire tends to seal the soil and that causes additional runoff and there is no vegetation. As the rain falls, you get more debris and silt in the runoff. That can have an adverse effect on drainage structures and create a potential for flooding.”

If you spot any flooding on area roadways, you are asked to report it to the Tuolumne County Sheriff’s Department at 209-533-5815.